John Oliver Tells CEOs to Say: “F**k You, Make Me" To Trump

John Oliver had some good advice for CEOs who come under pressure by the Trump administration in its efforts to silence speech and that is to say to the bully, “F**k you. Make me.”

John Oliver had some good advice for CEOs who come under pressure by the Trump administration in its efforts to silence speech that is not boot-licking enough for the Very Sensitive Snowflake in the White House, and that is to say to the bully, “F**k you. Make me.”

Stand Up To The Billionaires And Their Media By Supporting The Daily

And really, if the CEO of Disney doesn’t feel he has the resources to do that, then the rest of us are screwed. The other way of looking at this is why is the CEO of Disney letting regular American citizens, who fund his empire, put their whole selves on the line in protests while he bows down.

John Oliver explained patiently on his show Last Week Tonight to those who don’t get it yet how bullies work.

“One day, the history of the time we’re living through is going to be written. And when it is, I’m not sure even those in this administration are the ones who are going to come off worse. Now, don’t get me wrong. They’re going to come off terribly.”

“But history is also going to remember the cowards who definitely knew better, but still let things happen—whether it was for money, convenience, or just comfort. I know this is something of a tough sell, it can be a bit of anathema to risk-averse business leaders, but if we’ve learned nothing else from this administration’s second term so far—and I don’t think we have—it’s that giving the bully your lunch money doesn’t make him go away. It just makes him come back hungrier each time.”

“They are never going to stop. They’ve literally said that openly…”

He mentioned how they said they are coming for The View next.

“At some point, you’re going to have to draw a line. I might argue, why not draw it right here? And when they come to you with stupid, ridiculous demands—picking fights you know you can win in court—instead of rolling over, why not stand up? And use four words they don’t tend to teach you in business school…”

“… The only phrase that can genuinely make a weak bully go away: and that is, F**k you. Make me.”

Sadly, not only is the current crop of CEOs full of weird, weak and unpleasant men who don’t seem to grasp the moment beyond today, but we also have an opposition party with some members still “negotiating” with the bully, which only means that more vulnerable and marginalized people will be hurt because some people are privileged enough to have never had to deal with an abusive personality type.

Oliver also argued that Congress needs to pass legislation to limit the abuse of power undertaken by FCC Chairman Brendan Carr in his efforts to force a Russian state TV situation onto the United States.

For those who claim Carr did not directly attack free speech, yes, actually he did. And he did it “jawboning"(mafia) style, in a sort of passive aggressive way in an effort to avoid challenges.

Speaking on a podcast, Carr called Kimmel's comments about the murder of podcaster and activist Charlie Kirk "truly sick.” He told the host that broadcasters "can do this the easy way or the hard way," and implied that if ABC did not take action on Kimmel, there would be "additional work for the FCC ahead.”

Carr also weaponized the agency's licensing authority, including using the agency's power to approve mergers as leverage, and has opened investigations into the news divisions of ABC, CBS, and NBC. In other words, the three biggies on network news. He’s investigating them to pressure them.

There is no other way to read that, especially with Trump out here whining that “it should be illegal for journalists to cover his presidency in a negative light.”

Conservatives and Republicans are attacking free speech to such a degree that Senator Ted Cruz is saying maybe not. Attacking free speech is attacking the defining liberty of America. This means that Donald Trump is attacking American liberty.

And every single person and entity catering to him, enabling him, negotiating with him, and whitewashing him as he does it are equally guilty of destroying America. When the history books are written, these people and entities will go down as enemies to freedom, because these are the moments to fight.

What do you think about John Oliver’s advice to CEOs? Join the discussion in the comments below.